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NonKarens need not apply
Why churches are mostly made up of Karens. Archbishop Shelton Fabre of Louisville, Kentucky, has issued new norms for the posture of the faithful during Mass. To guard against “confusion and disunity,” the archbishop said that the congregation should kneel from the Agnus Dei until after Communion. The archbishop said that the faithful should receive…
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WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?
British energy minister Miliband announced that solar power systems made in China have “kill switches” on the inverters. The switches can be activated by wi-fi, so China can black out large parts of Europe and US whenever it wants. The US government was “aware” of the sabotage but didn’t say anything. Perhaps the “awareness” explains…
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Real hoops, fake hoops
Sometimes the Pharma route, drugs for anxiety and pain, seems attractive. But I’ve managed 75 years without such helps, and probably can continue. I prefer the drug of Little Victories. This old dog knows how to take the Victory drug! When a real hoop like a sudden jury call pops into my path I get…
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Finally getting smart!
A real smart grid: this summer Avista will start burying power lines in some fire-prone areas near Spokane. One is the Dartford area, which seems to be a frequent firer. The huge 1991 firestorm was caused by trees hitting powerlines. So far Avista doesn’t have plans for the city itself, but maybe it will happen…
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Why I read Wolf
I always check Wolf Richter’s column. Often it’s “not in my department”, but sometimes he provides a huge SO THAT’S WHY! His latest AHA is a description of the Treasury General Account, which is exactly like a normal checking account. All regular income (taxes, fees, bond sales) is deposited in the TGA, and all regular…
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I’m not shocked
Bloomberg is shocked by China’s tech progress. I’m not shocked. I saw how it happened. China thinks about its own people and serves its own country. China has long-term plans. China owns its corporations, so the corporations work for China. In the 80s China was sending thousands of students to OUR universities and research facilities,…
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Metrology bitching
Time for my regularly scheduled metrology bitching. One of the literary types on Substack noted that Sam Johnson was paid the miserly sum of 1575 pounds for his dictionary. Modern freelancers should be happy to get more than that. Miserly? Hardly. Depending on the measurement standard, Johnson got somewhere between $300k and $1 million in…
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Reassuring, sort of
I guess it’s reassuring. Amid the invasion by celebrities turning Substack into MSNBC and increasing Andreessen’s share value, the native Substackers are still quibbling about Oxford commas and em-dashes. I stopped using em-dashes about 10 years ago, obviously not because it resembled ChatGPT. Simply because the usual way of doing it—like this—is confusing. Words are…
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Papal elephant
Interesting to see all the blind men examining the new elephant. Analog fans like me are surprised and happy. Chicagoans are happy. Vax obsessers are not happy, accuse him of “vaccine boosterism”. Trads are cautious but hopeful. Catholic neocons are pissed. Earlier they were hoping for a “cold war pope” who would lead the new…
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Foy Rebellion reprint
Linked in previous item about math pope, worth a reprint. = = = = = REPRINT FROM 2022: Yesterday I was discussing the cultural IMPERATIVE to re-employ ordinary men after WW2. France implemented a similar IMPERATIVE after it recovered from the 1789 revolution, which turned its demonic vision of “science” into a god of war…
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Math pope
Prevost is a Villanova grad with a major in math. This could make him a somewhat more significant figure for nerd types. A math pope would prescribe csc as the cure for sin. When sin goes to zero, csc ascends to heaven. He would give absolution as the cure for negative feelings. An inner product…
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Ice vs mercury
Carney continues handling the psychopath correctly. US Democrats could learn something if they were capable of learning, but they aren’t. Russia has been playing this game for centuries, handling first Napoleon then Wilson then Tojo then Hitler then every US president since 1945. Maintain your ground connection. Absorb the punches. Bend back and forth but…
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Explains a lot
Turns out Substack is not a brave little rebel as the leaders want us to think. Like everything else in the tech realm it’s owned by one of the Effective Altruist devils. Marc Andreesen is one of the worst. This explains many things that didn’t make sense by the struggling young innovator myth. First it…
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The value of flips
Elon’s sudden flip from fake environmentalist to fake Trump cultist seems to have awakened a few of his Gaian fans. When a cult leader joins the other side, the followers split three ways. Some will continue with the same ideology and generate new leaders. Some will follow the person no matter where he goes. And…
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Why do juries get it right?
I’ve discussed this before, but it has a deeper connection after reading Sherry Olson’s account of medieval life. Juries are the LAST leftover of Natural Law in governing. In 1300 most governance was Natural Law. The Endarkenment hadn’t filled us with “self-evident” vicious lies about equality and rationality. Written laws were almost entirely local, along…
Polistra's Mill
Be your own beacon.
Polistra's Mill 